OVO says customers will wake up to automatic £271 payments in bank account

Affected customers are set to receive compensation averaging £271 each and they don't need to do anything - because OVO will contact them.

OVO has been hit with a £2.37million penalty by Ofgem for failures in handling customer complaints. Affected customers are set to receive compensation averaging £271 each and they don't need to do anything - because OVO will contact them.

Jacqui Gehrmann, deputy director of retail compliance at Ofgem, said: "Energy is an essential service. When things go wrong, it can cause consumers a lot of distress. In this case OVO failed to adequately protect and respond to their customers when it was needed most. This is not acceptable."

OVO was fined after lengthy delays in getting their complaints addressed, in some cases up to 18 months. There were also delays in Ovo taking action over the Energy Ombudsman’s decision when complaints were progressed.

READ MORE OVO warns 'affected' energy customers 'we will contact you directly'

OVO has taken steps to improve its complaint handling process after the fine. The company has increased its complaint handling resources, enhanced its complaints management system, and improved case management processes to ensure senior colleagues have oversight of complaints.

Natasha Gilmour, head of operational support at Citizens Advice Scotland, said: "While it's rare for a compliance case to be necessary to resolve such issues, it is reassuring to see how OVO has responded to the investigation by Ofgem, and we are satisfied that the new practices implemented are ensuring good and timely outcomes for our clients."

The Energy Ombudsman said: "We welcome today's news that following compliance engagement between Ofgem and OVO, consumers will be compensated for OVO's failures to implement the remedies set by the Energy Ombudsman."

A spokeswoman for OVO said: "We recognise that a particular group of our customers in 2023 waited longer than we'd like for a resolution and were overdue a response from us, so we've sent them a letter of apology and compensation to help."

In November 2022, the Guardian reported that some Ovo customers were left shocked when they received bills of up to £49,000 because of data errors that led to overinflated energy projections.